Working Dogs and the Trail Hunting Ban: Have Your Say

Defra is consulting on proposals to prohibit trail hunting in England and Wales.

The consultation follows the Government’s commitment to introduce a ban and asks a wide range of questions about how any new law should be drafted, what conduct should be covered, whether exemptions are needed, and what the wider social, business, economic and environmental impacts might be.

Trail hunting generally involves laying an animal-based scent trail for dogs to follow, and Defra is considering legislation to prohibit that activity while leaving other activities, such as drag hunting and clean boot hunting, outside the ban.

Although the consultation is primarily about trail hunting, some of the questions are directly relevant to landowners, land managers and others who use dogs for lawful rural and land-management purposes. For that reason, the Moorland Association has prepared a draft response for members to review. We are inviting comments before the response is finalised and submitted to Defra.

Why the Moorland Association is responding

The Moorland Association is not seeking to take a primary position on trail hunting as an activity. Our concern is to ensure that any legislation aimed at trail hunting is tightly drafted and does not inadvertently affect legitimate moorland management.

Dogs are used lawfully and responsibly in many aspects of rural and upland land management. This includes shooting, deer management, the recovery of shot or wounded animals, pest control, gamekeeping, conservation management, livestock protection and animal welfare.

The consultation also raises questions about animal-based scents, or scents which mimic animal-based scents, being used to train dogs. This is an important issue for working dogs.

In many cases, realistic scent training is essential if dogs are to perform reliably and humanely in the field, particularly when locating injured deer or recovering shot game.

The MA’s draft response therefore focuses on the risk of unintended consequences. A ban designed to address trail hunting should not create uncertainty or new liabilities for lawful working-dog use, land management, shooting, conservation or animal welfare activity.

Our main points

The draft response makes several key points.

Protecting lawful working-dog use

Any definition of trail hunting must be precise. It should not capture lawful land-management activities involving working dogs, even where dogs are trained to follow or respond to animal-based scent.

Existing Hunting Act exemptions relevant to shooting, stalking, flushing, retrieval, ratting, lawful below-ground work and animal welfare should be expressly preserved. The consultation should not be used as a route to reopen the Hunting Act more broadly or to narrow exemptions that support lawful rural and wildlife management.

Animal-based scents and scents that mimic animal-based scents should remain lawful for working-dog training and lawful operational use. This should include practical training materials such as game, deer scent, blood trails, skins, dummies and artificial training products used for legitimate working-dog purposes unrelated to trail hunting.

Avoiding unintended liability for landowners and managers

Any offences relating to landowners, occupiers or dog owners must require clear evidence of actual knowledge and deliberate authorisation. Moorland management often takes place across large, open, remote and unenclosed landscapes, with multiple access points and complex arrangements involving owners, tenants, sporting rights, grazing interests, keepers, employees, contractors and public access. Landowners and managers should not be exposed to liability for unauthorised activity, or for activities materially different from those they permitted.

Defra should issue clear guidance before any new law comes into force. Landowners, land managers, farmers, gamekeepers, stalkers, dog handlers, contractors and rural businesses need to understand what is prohibited, what remains lawful and what reasonable steps are expected when granting permission for activities on their land.

Finally, the draft response highlights the wider consequences of uncertainty. Poorly drafted legislation could create compliance burdens, insurance uncertainty, changes to land-access agreements, reluctance to permit lawful activities involving dogs, and reputational risk where legitimate land management is wrongly associated with prohibited trail hunting.

Why members’ views matter

The MA wants to ensure that its final response reflects the practical realities of moorland management. Members are therefore invited to review the draft submission and provide comments before it is sent to Defra.

We are particularly interested in members’ views on:

1. whether the draft reflects the practical use of working dogs on moorland;

2. whether there are additional concerns around landowner permission, access, tenancies or contractor arrangements;

3. whether the draft adequately covers shooting, deer management, pest control, predator control, gamekeeping, conservation and animal welfare;

4. whether any real-world examples or evidence should be added.

Practical examples from members will be particularly helpful, especially where they show how uncertainty could affect working-dog training, landowner permissions, access arrangements or animal welfare.

How to comment

Members can read our draft response here.

Please send any comments on the draft MA response to agilruth@moorlandassociation.org by 5pm on Monday 15 June.

Members who wish to respond directly to Defra can also do so through the Government’s consultation portal. Defra’s consultation closes on 18 June 2026, so comments are requested in good time to allow the MA to consider member feedback and finalise its submission.